Your Toyota’s battery works hard to get your car running and to keep it running. It’s important that you do your part to help the battery to have a long and healthy life, too. Here’s what Toy Doctor wants you to know about your Toyota’s battery.
Take Daily Steps to Protect the Battery
When you leave the car, make sure that lights and accessories are off or unplugged. There are few cars these days that don’t have an automatic shutoff that keeps these items from draining the battery, but it’s better to be safe than sorry. Also, make sure that doors, the hood, and the trunk are fully closed. Each can leave a light on, and that drains the battery.
Check on Your Battery Now and Then
The more that you check on your Toyota’s battery yourself, the more you learn about what’s normal for it and what might be a sign of trouble. Check the exterior of the battery for any differences in the outer casing. There shouldn’t be any cracks or sides that are bowed out. Also, look for things like powdery corrosion around the posts.
Ask to Have Your Battery and Alternator Tested
Testing your alternator and battery at least a couple of times a year helps you to stay on top of what’s going on with it. You can get a solid picture of how well the battery is holding a charge and whether there seems to be any trouble elsewhere, like in the alternator. Finding these issues early means that you don’t end up stranded on the side of the road because of a dead electrical system.
Drive Your Toyota
Here’s the really difficult part of the process. Drive your Toyota. First of all, it’s fun to do. But second of all, regularly driving your Toyota helps to keep the battery charged up, especially if you’re driving for longer than around 15 minutes each time you start up the car. Letting your Toyota sit means that the battery constantly discharges slowly, until it’s finally too low to start up the car, and that’s when you have bigger problems.
Mysterious battery issues are not fun to sort out, but you have help from Toy Doctor in Denver, CO whenever you need it. Call us right away and we’ll be happy to test your Toyota’s battery, alternator, or anything else that’s giving you trouble. We’ll give you accurate information you can use to get back to enjoying your Toyota.
